Import Preview: Super Dodgeball Brawlers

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Kunio-Kun is back to bring the pain.

By Nix

Little stocky bodies. Big squashy heads. Back on the NES, a company called "Technos" made a name for itself with a whole series of games featuring characters depicted simply with little stocky bodies and big squashy heads. Hardcore gamers of the day still have memories of this odd "franchise" of rough-and-tumble games featuring characters who all looked suspiciously familiar and who all tended to kick each other until they barfed. In the US, each of these games carried a different publisher's logo on the box, but in Japan, there was a reason why all of these games looked the same -- each came from a line of games featuring hot-blooded gang leader Kunio battling rivals in whatever challenge came their way. Whether it be street brawls or soccer matches, Kunio and crew were ready to represent Nekketsu High School.

Probably the best-remembered game in the Kunio-Kun series is the classic River City Ransom. Right up there is Super Dodgeball, the multiplayer smashfest where careful timing and psyche-outs let skilled players deliver an unending flurry of fastballs to the face. The game played loose with the Dodgeball rules as we typically know them, using stamina bars instead of the typical "get hit and you're out" rules and featuring a permanent team of field players and outside players. Whatever the variations, though, the game still reminded players of the schoolyard game where nerds got their glasses smashed and kids with strong hands could outwit and outlast even the buffest bullies.

Technos is long gone, but those stocky, squashy dodgeball players are still whipping balls around the court in an all new DS edition of the game produced by Ark System Works and Million (a company that employs some of the old Technos team members.) Aksys Games will have the US edition of the game under the title Super Dodgeball Brawlers in May, but with the Japanese edition out now overseas, we had a chance to take a look at the import version to see if the furious throws are still in full effect all these years later.

Super Dodgeball Brawlers (known as Chou NekketsuKoukou Kuniokun Dodge Ball in Japan) is actually the second major return of the series since Technos' passing, as a respectable but quickly forgotten GBA game came in the early days of that portable system. Given that every sequel to Super Dodgeball (including several never released outside of Japan) has been wildly different from the last, it's no surprise that the DS version has a lot of new and weird additions that will both impress and confound fans of the old NES game. This time out, the biggest and most controversial change is a new fighting system -- you can now punch and kick enemies to wear them down when you aren't controlling the ball, and items such as whips, trash cans and power drinks will fall from the sky onto the court for you to use. It's a River City Ransom / Super Dodgeball mash-up, and it's got some die-hard fans in a panic about how the purity of the game might be affected by the addition of fisticuffs.

Granted, the change does have its impact on the game balance, but the brawling moves added to the game have so far been our favorite part of the game. While the classic Super Dodgeball concentrated always on who controlled the ball and who was in his sights (a big problem with the Game Boy Advance game since there was little disadvantage to not using the Super Moves each and every throw and there was little defense built in outside of catching the ball), this DS game lets players take control of their character and have them go on offense while their opponent is still figuring out how best to psyche them out. You don't do much damage with a typical punch or kick, but a well timed dash-kick can knock the ball out of an opponent's hand or lay out three opposing teammates while the ball carrier is trying to build up his run-and-jump attack.

Once weapons start falling from the sky (the early moments of the game are kept clean, and it's only when players start getting knocked out that items start to fall), there's no telling what kind of chaos will occur. There are banana peels that cause players to trip, and burgers that restore your health (provided you can stay out of the line of fire long enough to finish eating them.) Technos followers will recognize the bats and chains and other items that fall, and while we do wish that the impressive physics system of the old River City Ransom had been implemented (it would be cool if there were tires rolled around once thrown, and we haven't seen a trash can stick on a player's head yet), there are exploits that a player can take advantage of if he uses weapons properly. For instance, the computer juggled us in one match by tossing a grenade at us (which has a ticking timer on it) then passing the ball to an opponent who nailed us from the back just as we were trying to avoid the explosion in front of us, doubling the hits and leaving us laid out for another hit. There's balance to the fighting system (you cannot kick somebody while they're down even though you can still nail them with a dodgeball), and players have the option of turning off both fights and items.